6th Circuit ruling on illegal detention of OCer

The man carried a cell phone, holstered on his hip, next to a semiautomatic handgun. a motorcyclist passing by stopped to complain about the visible weapon, and after a heated argument, called 911. The dispatcher stated that the weapon was legal in Ohio with a concealed carry weapon permit. An officer was dispatched, and took possession of the man's weapon. The officer threatened to arrest the man for inducing panic and placed him in handcuffs. .... While the trial court rejected First and Second Amendment charges against the officer on summary judgment, it permitted Fourth Amendment and state law claims to go forward.

A federal appeals court upheld this result. It noted that the officer had the right to approach the plaintiff and ask him questions, but that Ohio law permitted the man, with his permit, to do exactly what he was doing, openly carry his firearm. The officer had no basis for uncertainty abut the law, and had no evidence that the man was dangerous. All that he saw was that the man was armed, and legally so. There was no basis for reasonable suspicion of inducing panic or that the man needed to be disarmed, and allowing stops in these circumstances would effectively eliminate Fourth Amendment protection for legally armed persons. The court noted that "Not only has the State made open carry of a firearm legal, but it also does not require gun owners to produce or even carry their licenses for inquiring officers." While the officer also claimed that the man made a "furtive motion" towards his weapon before being disarmed, that was disputed and was an issue of fact for a jury. .... Northrup v. City of Toledo Police Dep't., #14-4050, 2015 U.S. App. Lexis 7868, 2015 Fed. App. 0092P (6th Cir.).

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skidmark said:

Yes, it happened in Ohio, but my thoughts are that the theory behind the decision applicable to the rest of the country as well.


http://www.aele.org/law/2015all07/LR2015JUL.html



http://www.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/15a0092p-06.pdf

Dispatcher tells 911 caller that OC is legal in Ohio with a CCW. But then decides to send a cop anyhow: "I'm not an officer" - suggesting that even though she knows the behavior reported is legal she's going to send a cop to check things out.

Note is the behavior of the guy's wife. "Helpful as a rubber crutch" does not even begin to describe her and the way she acts, starting with the guy who called 911 and continuing on to the cop who showed up.

The cop also displayed a lack of mental brilliance when he threatened to arrest the guy for inducing a panic when the wife told him to go look up [via the in-car computer?] the guy's carry permit.

Look at the last sentence on page 4 of the opinion. Read it carefully. Stop laughing and figure out what you can do to make that actually happen.

Read the first full paragraph of page 6. [I'm thinking of having it printed out and laminated for a card in my wallet.]

stay safe.

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